Out with the Old and in with the New!

As the Clock strikes twelve and the New Year is heralded in, so many of us make resolutions for the future.

I think that to plan ahead, to focus on ideals and goals is a good thing. To set ourselves up to fail is all too common. I tell my clients to do a few things to help them to achieve their goals.

Prepare and plan in advance. Give yourself options. Know your goal, how you will measure it and be clear to yourself about how this goal will benefit you. Have a contingency plan to help to get back on course if you are learning new habits, and you slip back into old ways that do not serve you well. Be a good friend to yourself, it will serve you far better than if you get cross with yourself if you have a slip up.

Weight Loss

Some typical examples of New Year resolutions may include wanting to lose weight. How will you deal with a house full of goodies that are still around from Christmas? Is the 1st of January the best time, or will you be more likely to succeed in a few weeks, how else can you dispose of the food? Will using a personal trainer help you, or do you need to see your GP first? What other options are there available to you? Would using a coach help, or joining a slimming group? What about buddying up with someone else so that you can support each other? Do you know how you will go about the weight loss; do you need any equipment or different foods in the house?

Smoking

If you are going to give up smoking, how is the best way for you to achieve this? Do you need to break a routine, (smoking with a drink or at coffee time); do you need to dispose of smoking equipment, ash trays etc? Will you use nicotine replacements, have you got them already? Do you need to see a doctor, or enlist the help of others? What other options can you use? Hypnotherapy? Books? Acupuncture?

Success comes more easily to those who plan and prepare. Success is also more likely if you are able to be pragmatic in approach. If you break your diet today, start again tomorrow, or from the next meal. If you feel too tired to exercise now, promise yourself that you will exercise tomorrow, remind yourself why you set yourself the goals, what is in it for you, and start again, encourage yourself as you would a friend. If you smoke a cigarette, say no to the next one. You can only control two things in your life, your attitude and your activity.

Be kind enough to yourself to set achievable goals and remind yourself that even if your goal is a big one, every step that you take towards it is a step in the right direction. Who do you know that can help you or has been successful in achieving a similar goal? What did they do and what worked for them?

Celebrate every achievement, forgive any lapses, and then try again. Above all remember that January 1st is the first day of a new year, but every day is the first day of the rest of your life, so enjoy!

I close now wishing you all a healthy and happy New Year!

Paula Lewendon

"Trained and certificated by Coaching Development
15yrs front line, retail management experience"
 
+44 (0)1273 278852
07973 784611
Paula@AboutYouCoaching.co.uk
www.AboutYouCoaching.co.uk
About You Coaching Ltd